An African Pope “should be possible”: Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya, Weighs In On “proportional representation” in Curia

In the April 24 interview, the Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya noted with concern that the geographical balance of the Cardinals in general and those serving in the Roman Curia in particular does not favor Africa, where the number of Catholics has so significantly increased that they represent “probably about one third of the Catholics in the world.”

In the latest analysis of the life of the Catholic Church globally that the Vatican’s Central Office of Church Statistics released in March, Africa registered the greatest growth; the Catholic population on the continent increased by 3.31%, from 272 million in 2022 to 281 million in 2023.

The 2025 Pontifical Yearbook that covers a two-year period, 2022-2023, revealed that Africa represents 20 percent of the world’s Catholic population. Most of the increase in the number of Priests and Bishops was also observed in Africa and Asia; the increase in the number of Priests in Africa was significant (2.7 percent), when globally their numbers recorded a slight decrease.

In the April 24 interview, the Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya said that the recorded increase in the Catholic population is not reflected in the hierarchy of the Rome-headquartered institution.

“If I look to Rome and to the Roman Curia, I don't see that kind of representation within the Curia,” Archbishop van Megen observed, adding that although there is some “opening up” with “more Africans than before, a bit more Asians than before, but it's still very slow.”

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“In many ways that Curia is white. And I do feel that we need to have this kind of proportional representation,” the Vatican diplomat emphasized.

In the history of the Catholic Church, only three out of the 266 successors of St. Peter have been of African descent. They include St. Victor (Pope Victor I), Pope St. Melchiades, and Pope St. Gelasius I, the Catholic Church’s third black Pope  known then for saving Rome from famine.

In the April 24 interview with Citizen TV, Archbishop van Megen also reflected on the legacy of the late Pontiff. “He always emphasized the importance of the peripheries — not only geographically but also socially,” he said.

Pope Francis’ leadership style, the Nairobi-based Vatican diplomat said, was shaped both by his Jesuit spirituality and his Argentinian roots.

“His motto, Miserando atque eligendo — ‘having mercy and choosing’ — encapsulated his life experience: being forgiven and called despite his imperfections,” he said.

Pope Francis, Archbishop van Megen went on to say, “identified with the people who work, who struggle to survive; and he emphasized that the Church must always stand with the poor.”

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